U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio will visit Israel and Arab states in mid-February, a State Department official said, making his first trip to the Middle East after a widely condemned proposal by President Donald Trump to displace Palestinians in Gaza.

WASHINGTON: US Secretary of State Marco Rubio will pay his first visit to the Middle East this month, a senior State Department official said Thursday, in the wake of President Donald Trump's remarks on relocating Gaza's population.

On Wednesday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said that President Donald Trump’s call for the ethnic cleansing of Gaza — widely condemned by international officials as incitement to commit human rights violations — is actually “very generous” toward Palestinians.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio weighed in on President Trump’s proposal to take over the Gaza Strip, calling to “Make Gaza Beautiful Again.” “Gaza MUST BE FREE from Hamas,” Rubio posted to X. “As

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio will visit Israel and key Arab nations from February 13-18, marking his first Middle East trip since President Donald Trumps controversial proposal to relocate Palestinians in Gaza.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio plans to travel to the Middle East next week after backlash against President Trump's plan for the U.S. to "take over" and rebuild Gaza. Israel's government is preparing to move Palestinians out of the territory,